The grizzled, greatcoat-clad Union soldier stands watch over a Maine rail trail, and whether (depending on the season) bicycling, ATVing (“four-wheeling”), or snowmobiling by the veteran standing atop his pedestal, most passersby will not notice him. Only here in Corinna in western Penobscot County does a rail trail brush against a Civil War memory — […]
While the old folks at home in Dexter shoveled snow in winter 1862, the greatest problem facing Pvt. Eugene Kincaide Kingman of Co. H, 12th Maine Infantry, was deciding which skeeter to swat. After arriving at Ship Island off the Mississippi coast on Feb. 12, the 12th Maine boys had camped near the island’s north […]
Ship Island: The name’s not familiar like Long Island, Mount Desert Island, or Peaks Island. If you are a Civil War buff, perhaps you’ve heard of the place — — or maybe you haven’t. Pvt. Eugene Kincaide Kingman of Dexter certainly thought Ship Island was a great place to escape a cold Maine winter. He […]
There were many moments in winter 1864 when a Maine doctor stationed on the Texas Gulf Coast would have welcomed a “Dear John” letter — or any printed material to disrupt the mind-numbing ennui affecting his morale. But a letter from home was the best morale-boosting elixir of all. In transferring from the 15th […]
Given the choice between participating in Mardi Gras 1863 and watching a cavalry review, Pvt. Eugene Kincaide Kingman of Dexter opted for the latter. Yet he still wound up applying a shine to his shoes and uniform and going to a masked ball, but certainly not as a blue-clad Cinderella. Hailing from Dexter, Eugene served […]
Given the opportunity to have his wife and young son join him on a Texas Gulf Coast island in late 1863, Dr. John Butler Wilson of Dexter shipped them home instead. He soon regretted his decision — and had he foreseen the future, Wilson would never have let his family out of his sight. […]
